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e stern carolinian salisbury n c tuesday april 20 1824 no 202 this day justify their opposition to the federal constitution and if the fact that in the convention mr h imilton proposed a president and a senate for life is to cast an indelible reproach on himself and on those who aftervva d " delighted to honor him will it be forgotten that mr madison and edmund randolph always high in the confidence of the democratic party not only voted for these very measures but actually proposed them selves to give to the general govern ment a veto on every state law ? these facts are adverted to not in the spirit of reproach but to show that errors of judgment in relation even to the most important measures ought not to be considered as in reality they have not been by the american peo-i pie evidences of an incurable defec tive principle the fact is that a few years operation of the constitution re lieved the operations both of his friends and its enemies j and consecrated as it is at this day in the affections of every american it is no longer one of fose points on which the federal and democratic parties can never be arrayed against each other the foreign policy of the govern ment until the termination of the late war was a theme of endless contro versy between the two parties it is no longer so there is a general con currence of sentiment as to the system of foreign intercourse that ought tu be adopted ; or if there be a difference it is between individuals rather than parties on a late important occasion mr clay and mr webster have co incided in opinion while the views of both have been resisted by a large ma jority of congress without reference to former part divisions even in^relation to our past policy about which we were once so much at variance there is now a general con currence of sentiment or if we dif fer at all it is in relation to points pe culiar to the times in whiah they origi nated and which it is hardly possible should ever again disturb our repose who docs not new acknowledge the wisdom and propriety of general washington's proclamation of neutra lity who doubts that the country was essentially benefitted by the adop tion of mr jay's treaty ? whose bo som does not burn with indignation at the recital ofthe indolence of genet who hesitates to approve the maniv stand which was made by the second administration against the outrages of france ? who does not condemn the violent opposition which was made to the measures of defence and hostility required by the times who now contends that great britain had done us no essential injurv before the late war who doubts that the character of the country was very much elevated by that war ? who thinks it unbe coming a moral and religious people because opposed to its declaration to have rejoiced at its successes ? who does not lament the indiscriminate op position made to the measures of de fence and hosgmity which it required ? and above alif who does not unhesi tatingly subscribe to the sentiment of the lamented decatur and exclaim in his language " may our country al ways be right in her controversies with other nations ; but always successful whether right or wrong ?" on those points at least there is no longer a difference of opinion requiring that either party should be held up to the nation as unworthy of its confidence it cannot be forgotten with what zeal the funding system originating with general hamilton was opposed by his political enemies it hasr since received the sanction of every admin istration the navy too was a theme of obloquy and reproach to its earliest patrons it is now the favorite of the nation no measure perhaps con tributed more to widen the breach be tween the parties and to fix their character than the establishment of the first national bank a similar insti tution with a large capital and a more intimate connection with the govern c0mmu8icatiqit mr white .- as i have always understood that our paper professed to be an indifferent dis tenser of justice to all men and all parties i ake the liberty of asking you to copy into your olumns a piece from the national intelligencer igned " a virginian it is so good an answer o the wholesale proscription dealt out in the iddress of the washington caucus that i am olicitous it should be read by all your patrons ation with which we should look on the errors into which all have occa sionally been betrayed v^hat has hitherto been said is of course applicable only to parties sep arated from each other by some actual difference of principle parties are under any circumstances evils they beget excitement interrupt social and political harmony and not unfrequent iy exclude from the service of the gov ernment the best feelings md the best talents of tbe nation these incon veniencies however are tolerated as he result of the imperfection of hu man institutions and of the impossi bility of procuring the general assent of mankind to any propositi m not sus ceptible of mathematical demonstra tion they are necessary and una voidable sacrifices to principle and to principle onlv whenever any number of individu als on the contrary differing essential ly among themselves combine for the purpc.se of perpetuating an unmeaning name continuing distinctions unfoun ded in principle and entailing n the nation the evils inseparable from par ties such individuals constitute a fac tion animated by no patriotic feel ing they seek only to narrow the c m pctition for office â€¢ and in order to in crease the chances of their own eleva tion are willing to keep alive forever the flame of p litical contention and to deprive the country of the services of many of its most valuable citizens if you will look through the past histo ry of our country you will find that most of the subjects of contention have either passed away forever or that a change in the condition of our country or the honest convictions of our minds have brought us to think so nearly alike that it is impossible we should jgain be arrayed against each other as parties organized for the support of principle and i repeat it that those who would entail on us the ac knowledged evils of party spirit merely to perpetuate a name or to diminish an honorable competition for office in order to increase the chances of their own elevation are neither more nor less than a faction to the editors of the national intelligencer gentlemen the argument most per linciouslay urged and apparently most relied on by the members and advo cates ofthe late congressional caucus is its necessity for maintaining the un ion and ascendancy of ihe democruiic fiar ty the fact that this argument is ur ged exclusively by the adherents of one of the candidates for the presiden tial chair who justify the belief thai it was resorted to merely for the pur pose of adding to his strength by re viving and enlisting m his behalf fee lings which have no longer any foun dation in principle ; and which in the minds of intelligent and disinterested politicians of all parties have long since been superseded by a spirit of to lerant and more expanded patriotism taking it for granted however thai there are at least some amongst those whohave given it their sanction sincere in their belief of its importance in pro moting not merely the election of their favorite candidate but the general wel fare of the nation 1 beg leave in the course of a very few remarks to sub mit to an intelligent community the considerations which ought in mv opinion to deprive this argument of all its force i have recurred to the past not for the purpose nor in the expectation of exciting an angry emotion i never would recur to it but to draw from it lessons of wisdom for the future in the hasty review which has been taken do we not see enough to convince us of the imperfections of the human judgment and of the errors into v/hich the best of us are but too apt to fall under the influence of high party ex citement and should not this teach us to temper our zeal and to look with candor and liberality on the acts nf those irom whom we may happen for the time to differ under the influence of this spirit then let us turn our eyes for a mo ment to the future what points are there in advance of us on which the old parties are likely again to be brought into collision i am willing to take your own explanation of the term republicanism made some time during the last year as an exposi tion of the true policy of our country if i am not mistaken for the paper containing it is not by me i yielded a ready assent to almost every doctrine it advanced and in doing so i have no doubt that i accorded with the great majv)rity of the nation but there are principles in that expose the most important perhaps it contains that will always meet with a decided opposition in the nation and in its councils the sources and character of that opposition you will readily un derstand by reference to speeches on appropriation army and fortifica tion bills ; t.i the columns ofthe rich mond enquirer to mr madison's celebrated report in 98 ; and to the speeches of the greater p rt of the virginian members on the internal improvement bill that has lately pas sed the house of representatives in tnis opposition i venture to assert that very few federalists will be found and i must entirely have misunder stood the character of that party if its members are not henceforward ar rayed on the side of any administra tion organized on the principles and pursuing the policy you have recom mended if the catholics of ireland maintain ed at this day the doctrines of their ancestors j if they now contended fo r the supremacy of the pope and held themselves hound to obey his man dates in opposition to the constitution and laws of their own country who would condemn the political disquali fications under which they labor ? who would not on the contrary consider them as the enactments of wisdom and as safeguards drawn by the statesmen of england around the laws and the liberties of their country ? but these absurdities of faith have passed away forever the irish catholic contends for no more than the right of wor shipping his maker in his own way he yields a ready and unqualified obe dience to the laws under which he lives ; he pays his taxes to the gov ernment ; he fights the battles of his king and yet he is denied the right of participation in the offices and the honors of his country is this liberty is it toleration ? or is it not rather the most rancorous and unjustifiable persecution and yet it would puzzle the most ingenious c isuist to designate wherein it differs in effect from the spirit which breathes throughout the appeal but lately made in behalf of mr crawford the authors of that ap peal unwilling to present their candi date to the nation have sought to make him the president of a party feelings long since forgotten are re vived ; landmarks decayed and aban doned are re-established and a vain effort is made to rally around the same standard individuals bound together by no common tie to the exclusion of others who are peaceably and honor ably engaged with the great body of the nation and without reference to either names or persons in maintain ing the best principles and in phcing on the surest foundation the best in stitutions of the country had such an appeal been made at any period pre ceding the election of mr monroe it would have constituted no object of complaint it would then have been an honorable stand in support of prin ciple and not a feeble attempt at poli tical persecution i appeal to you gentlemen to say what there is in the principles of the federal party to require or to justify the proscription with which they are threatened ? looking to the past you will sometimes it is true find them the advocates of false doctrines and vr hen the people of any country are divided in opinion as to the constitu tion under which they live or the prin ciples upon which the government ought to be administered it is very na tural and certainly very proper that those who think alike should take the necessary measures for promoting un ion among themselves and for giving ascendancy to their favorite principles thus organize ri and thus acting they constitute a party but not a faction they look to the interest of their coun try and not to self aggrandizement and if amongst the measures of con cert and party discipline which are adopted they think fit to secure the more important offices either of profit or honor in the hands of their own ad herents to the exclusion of their poli tical opponents they do no more than may be justified on every principle of sound discretion and real patriot is m.h such has actually been the case in he united states from the first or ganization of the government down to the termination of the late war this country has been divided into two great political parties differing at all times either as to the excellence of the constitution itself the spirit ia which it was to he construed or the why then is a party no longer bound together by similar sentiments no longer advocating the same princi ples and no longer capable of uniting in the same policy to be recognized why are those who like yourselves profess to be the advocates of a liberal construction of the constitution and of a fair manly and generous system of public measures to be separated from men who concur with them in senti ment and to be associated with others who differ from them in almost every point could mr clay and mr cal houn or even your own favorite mr crawford if his sentiments have been correctly estimated sit at the same board with mr holmes mr chand ler mr lowrie and mr cocke or would they find themselves har monizing better with mr barbour mr stevenson and mr archer im agine to yourselves a council composed of all the gentlemen that have been na med the powers of burke alone could faithfully pourtray its character it is enough for us to know that liber al sentiment and national feeling would sink powerless at the feet of false econ omy and state usurpation and yet such is the union which the members and advocates of the caucus would effect â€” an union which would exclude mr webster from the councils of his country while it would admit mr holnres of maine to its highest honors â€” an union which would have substituted for the present general principles of which the gov ernment of its creation ought to be ad ministered neither party has yielded to the other in the zeal with which it has sought to procure concert among its members or to give ascendancy to its principles and although we may lament the occasional inconsistencies and the dangerous excesses into which both have been unavoidably betrayed by an indiscriminate support on the one hand and an indiscriminate oppo sition on the other to the measures of the existing administration we cannot for a moment admit that the majori ty of either actuated by any other than the purest the most patriotic and the most disinterested motives a con trary belief would be in direct hostil ty with the principle to which as re publicans we all accede that the great mass of the people however they mav be deceived are nevertheless honest in their intentions such is believed to be the view which every intelligent and candid man must take in relation to the operations of the two parties into which we have been divided nor is it at all affected by the fact that selfish and designing men have sometimes been associated with and occasionally perhaps ad mitted into the confidence of both this is a misfortune inseparable from the frailties of our nature and ought in truth to increase the spirit of toler erroneous principles under the in fluence of party zeal too they have been occasionally betrayed into an op position to measures which subsequent conviction has convinced them were ment has since been called into exiil ence by the opponents of the first an unsuccessful experiment has been made on commercial restrictions as weapons of war they have given way it is presumed forever to " powder ball and trusty blade in fact gentlemen calculated to promote the interests of their country but have their oppo nents been uniformly right and at all times consistent politicians very few of them it is presumed will at

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e stern carolinian salisbury n c tuesday april 20 1824 no 202 this day justify their opposition to the federal constitution and if the fact that in the convention mr h imilton proposed a president and a senate for life is to cast an indelible reproach on himself and on those who aftervva d " delighted to honor him will it be forgotten that mr madison and edmund randolph always high in the confidence of the democratic party not only voted for these very measures but actually proposed them selves to give to the general govern ment a veto on every state law ? these facts are adverted to not in the spirit of reproach but to show that errors of judgment in relation even to the most important measures ought not to be considered as in reality they have not been by the american peo-i pie evidences of an incurable defec tive principle the fact is that a few years operation of the constitution re lieved the operations both of his friends and its enemies j and consecrated as it is at this day in the affections of every american it is no longer one of fose points on which the federal and democratic parties can never be arrayed against each other the foreign policy of the govern ment until the termination of the late war was a theme of endless contro versy between the two parties it is no longer so there is a general con currence of sentiment as to the system of foreign intercourse that ought tu be adopted ; or if there be a difference it is between individuals rather than parties on a late important occasion mr clay and mr webster have co incided in opinion while the views of both have been resisted by a large ma jority of congress without reference to former part divisions even in^relation to our past policy about which we were once so much at variance there is now a general con currence of sentiment or if we dif fer at all it is in relation to points pe culiar to the times in whiah they origi nated and which it is hardly possible should ever again disturb our repose who docs not new acknowledge the wisdom and propriety of general washington's proclamation of neutra lity who doubts that the country was essentially benefitted by the adop tion of mr jay's treaty ? whose bo som does not burn with indignation at the recital ofthe indolence of genet who hesitates to approve the maniv stand which was made by the second administration against the outrages of france ? who does not condemn the violent opposition which was made to the measures of defence and hostility required by the times who now contends that great britain had done us no essential injurv before the late war who doubts that the character of the country was very much elevated by that war ? who thinks it unbe coming a moral and religious people because opposed to its declaration to have rejoiced at its successes ? who does not lament the indiscriminate op position made to the measures of de fence and hosgmity which it required ? and above alif who does not unhesi tatingly subscribe to the sentiment of the lamented decatur and exclaim in his language " may our country al ways be right in her controversies with other nations ; but always successful whether right or wrong ?" on those points at least there is no longer a difference of opinion requiring that either party should be held up to the nation as unworthy of its confidence it cannot be forgotten with what zeal the funding system originating with general hamilton was opposed by his political enemies it hasr since received the sanction of every admin istration the navy too was a theme of obloquy and reproach to its earliest patrons it is now the favorite of the nation no measure perhaps con tributed more to widen the breach be tween the parties and to fix their character than the establishment of the first national bank a similar insti tution with a large capital and a more intimate connection with the govern c0mmu8icatiqit mr white .- as i have always understood that our paper professed to be an indifferent dis tenser of justice to all men and all parties i ake the liberty of asking you to copy into your olumns a piece from the national intelligencer igned " a virginian it is so good an answer o the wholesale proscription dealt out in the iddress of the washington caucus that i am olicitous it should be read by all your patrons ation with which we should look on the errors into which all have occa sionally been betrayed v^hat has hitherto been said is of course applicable only to parties sep arated from each other by some actual difference of principle parties are under any circumstances evils they beget excitement interrupt social and political harmony and not unfrequent iy exclude from the service of the gov ernment the best feelings md the best talents of tbe nation these incon veniencies however are tolerated as he result of the imperfection of hu man institutions and of the impossi bility of procuring the general assent of mankind to any propositi m not sus ceptible of mathematical demonstra tion they are necessary and una voidable sacrifices to principle and to principle onlv whenever any number of individu als on the contrary differing essential ly among themselves combine for the purpc.se of perpetuating an unmeaning name continuing distinctions unfoun ded in principle and entailing n the nation the evils inseparable from par ties such individuals constitute a fac tion animated by no patriotic feel ing they seek only to narrow the c m pctition for office â€¢ and in order to in crease the chances of their own eleva tion are willing to keep alive forever the flame of p litical contention and to deprive the country of the services of many of its most valuable citizens if you will look through the past histo ry of our country you will find that most of the subjects of contention have either passed away forever or that a change in the condition of our country or the honest convictions of our minds have brought us to think so nearly alike that it is impossible we should jgain be arrayed against each other as parties organized for the support of principle and i repeat it that those who would entail on us the ac knowledged evils of party spirit merely to perpetuate a name or to diminish an honorable competition for office in order to increase the chances of their own elevation are neither more nor less than a faction to the editors of the national intelligencer gentlemen the argument most per linciouslay urged and apparently most relied on by the members and advo cates ofthe late congressional caucus is its necessity for maintaining the un ion and ascendancy of ihe democruiic fiar ty the fact that this argument is ur ged exclusively by the adherents of one of the candidates for the presiden tial chair who justify the belief thai it was resorted to merely for the pur pose of adding to his strength by re viving and enlisting m his behalf fee lings which have no longer any foun dation in principle ; and which in the minds of intelligent and disinterested politicians of all parties have long since been superseded by a spirit of to lerant and more expanded patriotism taking it for granted however thai there are at least some amongst those whohave given it their sanction sincere in their belief of its importance in pro moting not merely the election of their favorite candidate but the general wel fare of the nation 1 beg leave in the course of a very few remarks to sub mit to an intelligent community the considerations which ought in mv opinion to deprive this argument of all its force i have recurred to the past not for the purpose nor in the expectation of exciting an angry emotion i never would recur to it but to draw from it lessons of wisdom for the future in the hasty review which has been taken do we not see enough to convince us of the imperfections of the human judgment and of the errors into v/hich the best of us are but too apt to fall under the influence of high party ex citement and should not this teach us to temper our zeal and to look with candor and liberality on the acts nf those irom whom we may happen for the time to differ under the influence of this spirit then let us turn our eyes for a mo ment to the future what points are there in advance of us on which the old parties are likely again to be brought into collision i am willing to take your own explanation of the term republicanism made some time during the last year as an exposi tion of the true policy of our country if i am not mistaken for the paper containing it is not by me i yielded a ready assent to almost every doctrine it advanced and in doing so i have no doubt that i accorded with the great majv)rity of the nation but there are principles in that expose the most important perhaps it contains that will always meet with a decided opposition in the nation and in its councils the sources and character of that opposition you will readily un derstand by reference to speeches on appropriation army and fortifica tion bills ; t.i the columns ofthe rich mond enquirer to mr madison's celebrated report in 98 ; and to the speeches of the greater p rt of the virginian members on the internal improvement bill that has lately pas sed the house of representatives in tnis opposition i venture to assert that very few federalists will be found and i must entirely have misunder stood the character of that party if its members are not henceforward ar rayed on the side of any administra tion organized on the principles and pursuing the policy you have recom mended if the catholics of ireland maintain ed at this day the doctrines of their ancestors j if they now contended fo r the supremacy of the pope and held themselves hound to obey his man dates in opposition to the constitution and laws of their own country who would condemn the political disquali fications under which they labor ? who would not on the contrary consider them as the enactments of wisdom and as safeguards drawn by the statesmen of england around the laws and the liberties of their country ? but these absurdities of faith have passed away forever the irish catholic contends for no more than the right of wor shipping his maker in his own way he yields a ready and unqualified obe dience to the laws under which he lives ; he pays his taxes to the gov ernment ; he fights the battles of his king and yet he is denied the right of participation in the offices and the honors of his country is this liberty is it toleration ? or is it not rather the most rancorous and unjustifiable persecution and yet it would puzzle the most ingenious c isuist to designate wherein it differs in effect from the spirit which breathes throughout the appeal but lately made in behalf of mr crawford the authors of that ap peal unwilling to present their candi date to the nation have sought to make him the president of a party feelings long since forgotten are re vived ; landmarks decayed and aban doned are re-established and a vain effort is made to rally around the same standard individuals bound together by no common tie to the exclusion of others who are peaceably and honor ably engaged with the great body of the nation and without reference to either names or persons in maintain ing the best principles and in phcing on the surest foundation the best in stitutions of the country had such an appeal been made at any period pre ceding the election of mr monroe it would have constituted no object of complaint it would then have been an honorable stand in support of prin ciple and not a feeble attempt at poli tical persecution i appeal to you gentlemen to say what there is in the principles of the federal party to require or to justify the proscription with which they are threatened ? looking to the past you will sometimes it is true find them the advocates of false doctrines and vr hen the people of any country are divided in opinion as to the constitu tion under which they live or the prin ciples upon which the government ought to be administered it is very na tural and certainly very proper that those who think alike should take the necessary measures for promoting un ion among themselves and for giving ascendancy to their favorite principles thus organize ri and thus acting they constitute a party but not a faction they look to the interest of their coun try and not to self aggrandizement and if amongst the measures of con cert and party discipline which are adopted they think fit to secure the more important offices either of profit or honor in the hands of their own ad herents to the exclusion of their poli tical opponents they do no more than may be justified on every principle of sound discretion and real patriot is m.h such has actually been the case in he united states from the first or ganization of the government down to the termination of the late war this country has been divided into two great political parties differing at all times either as to the excellence of the constitution itself the spirit ia which it was to he construed or the why then is a party no longer bound together by similar sentiments no longer advocating the same princi ples and no longer capable of uniting in the same policy to be recognized why are those who like yourselves profess to be the advocates of a liberal construction of the constitution and of a fair manly and generous system of public measures to be separated from men who concur with them in senti ment and to be associated with others who differ from them in almost every point could mr clay and mr cal houn or even your own favorite mr crawford if his sentiments have been correctly estimated sit at the same board with mr holmes mr chand ler mr lowrie and mr cocke or would they find themselves har monizing better with mr barbour mr stevenson and mr archer im agine to yourselves a council composed of all the gentlemen that have been na med the powers of burke alone could faithfully pourtray its character it is enough for us to know that liber al sentiment and national feeling would sink powerless at the feet of false econ omy and state usurpation and yet such is the union which the members and advocates of the caucus would effect â€” an union which would exclude mr webster from the councils of his country while it would admit mr holnres of maine to its highest honors â€” an union which would have substituted for the present general principles of which the gov ernment of its creation ought to be ad ministered neither party has yielded to the other in the zeal with which it has sought to procure concert among its members or to give ascendancy to its principles and although we may lament the occasional inconsistencies and the dangerous excesses into which both have been unavoidably betrayed by an indiscriminate support on the one hand and an indiscriminate oppo sition on the other to the measures of the existing administration we cannot for a moment admit that the majori ty of either actuated by any other than the purest the most patriotic and the most disinterested motives a con trary belief would be in direct hostil ty with the principle to which as re publicans we all accede that the great mass of the people however they mav be deceived are nevertheless honest in their intentions such is believed to be the view which every intelligent and candid man must take in relation to the operations of the two parties into which we have been divided nor is it at all affected by the fact that selfish and designing men have sometimes been associated with and occasionally perhaps ad mitted into the confidence of both this is a misfortune inseparable from the frailties of our nature and ought in truth to increase the spirit of toler erroneous principles under the in fluence of party zeal too they have been occasionally betrayed into an op position to measures which subsequent conviction has convinced them were ment has since been called into exiil ence by the opponents of the first an unsuccessful experiment has been made on commercial restrictions as weapons of war they have given way it is presumed forever to " powder ball and trusty blade in fact gentlemen calculated to promote the interests of their country but have their oppo nents been uniformly right and at all times consistent politicians very few of them it is presumed will at